Dahlia Taiheiyo

The 'Taiheiyo' Decorative Dahlia offers very large flowers of the "dinnerplate" type, 20 to 25 cm in size. With a strong personality, they are composed of white ligules more or less twisted, gathered rather loosely, tinted or speckled with shades of pink and violet. Each flower interprets the distribution of colours in a different way within a sumptuously colourful bouquet. This fairly tall variety is very floriferous. Also superb in bouquets.

Dahlias belong to the large family of asteraceae, originally from the high plateaus of Mexico. Currently, the some 25,000 horticultural varieties created by humans have invaded, to our great pleasure, gardens worldwide. Dahlias are classified according to the shape of their heads. 'Taiheiyo' is a Dahlia from the decorative group with large flowers. The inflorescences are composed of several rows of long and flexible outer ligules, more or less twisted. The heads are opulent and measure up to 25 cm in diameter. The juxtaposition of all these bicolour flowers transforms the plant into a fascinating bouquet. The plant reaches approximately 85 cm to 1 m in height and 50 to 60 cm in width, with a bushy habit. Its leaves, with a smooth texture, are divided into very denticulate lobes. The flowering of this variety begins in July and ends in October, if care is taken to remove faded flowers or to make bouquets frequently.

Today, essential in gardens, Dahlias were initially cultivated in Mexico as a root vegetable. Their poor taste quickly relegated them to the status of ornamental plants, but they are still welcome in the vegetable garden to bring some colour among the vegetables and supply a reserve of cut flowers. 'Taiheiyo', with its strong personality, can be used alone, or enhanced by a setting of grasses (Stipa, Pennisetum, Foxtail Barley, Carex...) or panicle phlox and white, pink, or red cosmos. It could also be combined with bush roses, in colour harmony.